by Miranda Lee
‘Rubbish. What about coffee?’
‘No. I’d rather not sit here any longer, if you don’t mind. I can always make us some coffee up in the apartment.’
Alex smiled. ‘I do like a girl who knows what she wants.’
‘I suppose you think I want you,’ she said, her remark surprising him, then annoying him. Damn, but she was a difficult woman. A great PA, but a pain in the neck as a lover.
‘That thought did cross my mind when you kissed me in the shower earlier,’ he said in droll tones.
At least he had the satisfaction of seeing a guilty colour enter her cheeks.
‘It’s been some time since I’ve had any decent sex,’ she said, defiance quickly back in her eyes. ‘If I wasn’t on the rebound from my relationship with Dwayne, you would never have made it to first base with me.’
The corners of his mouth tilted up into a sardonic smile. ‘You honestly believe that?’
* * *
Harriet stifled a groan of dismay. What on earth had possessed her to start this type of tit-for-tat conversation? Not only was it dishonest of her, it was potentially humiliating. But, oh...how she’d hated seeing that smug look on his far-too-handsome face, as though it was a foregone conclusion that she would do whatever he wanted. Her pathetic effort to pull his male ego down a peg or two was already in danger of backfiring on her; Alex’s bedroom-blue eyes were glittering at her in a wickedly sexy fashion. Clearly, he meant to show her that she was talking rubbish. Which she was. That was the problem.
But she’d be darned if she was going to admit anything. Squaring her shoulders, she found a cool smile from somewhere.
‘You do think you’re irresistible, don’t you?’
‘Not at all, but I know what I know. You want me as much as I want you. I’m not afraid to admit it, but you are, for some reason. Silly, really. There’s nothing to be gained from your pretending this has something to do with your breaking up with Dwayne. That was just the catalyst which threw us together. You’ve fallen in lust with me, Harry, and I with you. That’s the cold, hard truth of it. Now, do stop putting obstacles in the way of our pleasure. And do stop wasting time. We should be in bed by now, doing what I do very well, and which you have already told me you like a lot. Come...’
When he stood up and reached out his hand towards her, Harriet gave up and gave in.
‘You really are an arrogant bastard,’ she muttered as she placed her hand in his and let him pull her up onto slightly unsteady feet. Possibly her light-headedness was due to the wine she had drunk, but Harriet doubted it. More likely it was due to the waves of desire that were currently washing through her body. Sweeping up her bag with her free hand, she let Alex steer her from the restaurant, leaving a forlorn-looking waiter in their wake. When she dared to say something, Alex just shrugged and said the charge for the meal would be added to his room account.
Alex didn’t say a word to her during their lift ride upwards, or during the short walk along the hallway, the silence only adding to the sexual tension which was gripping Harriet with cruelly frustrating tentacles. Every muscle in her body was tight with need. When she glanced over at Alex, she was taken aback at the tension she glimpsed in his face. He hadn’t lied to her. He wanted her as much as she wanted him. It was a sinfully seductive thought.
Once they were alone, with the door locked behind them, he turned and yanked her into his arms.
‘No more nonsense now,’ he ground out after his ravaging kiss reduced them both to heavy breathing. ‘You have five minutes to be naked in my bed.’
Alex’s lack of sexual inhibition was overwhelming. Yet exciting at the same time.
‘Well, what are you waiting for?’ he asked, a dry amusement in his voice and eyes.
‘You’re not just an arrogant bastard,’ she threw at him. ‘You’re a wicked devil as well!’ And with that she whirled and flounced off, his laughter following her.
* * *
As Alex hurriedly stripped off in the bedroom, he smiled at the memory of the shock that had zoomed into her eyes. Harriet claimed to have been around, but he suspected that her idea of ‘been around’ was totally different from his. She wasn’t even close to being the sophisticated woman of the world she liked to think she was. Not a femme fatale, either. But he liked that about her; liked that she could still be shocked.
He couldn’t wait to shock her some more.
After a quick trip to the bathroom, Alex collected a new box of condoms from his gym bag, placed it on the bedside table, then climbed, naked, into the bed, his heart thudding with anticipation, his erection bordering on painful. He regretted now not jumping into a cold shower for a couple of minutes, scowling as he conceded he was not going to be able to last all that long the first time. Still, they had all night. He was not a once-a-night man; his sexual stamina was something he’d worked on over the years.
Where was that infernal woman? he thought, frustrated as he glared at the still-empty doorway. Five minutes had well and truly gone by now.
* * *
Harriet knew she’d passed her five-minute deadline, but she simply could not summon up the courage to walk stark naked into Alex’s bedroom. She would have put on the white towelling bathrobe she’d worn earlier, except that it wasn’t in her bathroom any more. It was out there somewhere. She hadn’t packed a dressing gown, well aware that a five-star resort would provide one. In the end, she grabbed the PJs she’d brought with her and pulled them on. They were hardly the sexiest of outfits, the long pants and long sleeves covering almost every inch of her. And then there were the unfortunate little-girl colours. The bottom was pink-and-white stripes, the top plain white with little pink love hearts all over it. Emily had bought them for her for her birthday last year.
Thinking of Emily made Harriet groan. Her best friend would have a fit if she knew what she was doing at this moment. Which meant she would never tell her. By the time Emily got back from her holiday, her affair with Alex would probably be over. Taking a couple of deep breaths, Harriet turned and walked from the room with her chin held high. She was shaking inside when she thought of Alex’s reaction. He liked to have his orders obeyed...
He was waiting for her on the bed, sitting up with just a sheet over him, a mountain of pillows stuffed behind his head, his magnificent chest bare, his handsome face scowling. But not for long; major amusement rocketed into his eyes as they raked her up and down. He didn’t laugh out loud, but he was close.
‘I like your idea of naked,’ he said, shooting her a heart-stopping smile.
Her stomach flipped right over. ‘Sorry. I just couldn’t do it.’
‘You have no reason to be shy, Harry. You have a very beautiful body.’
Now her heart flipped over. Oh, Harriet, Harriet. Be careful. You don’t want to fall in love with this devil. He’ll eat you alive.
She gave him a long, considering look as she walked over to the side of the bed closest to where he was lying. ‘I do not have a very beautiful body, Alex,’ she denied quietly. ‘It’s nice enough, but not anything special. Please do not feel you have to flatter me. Trust me when I say it’s not necessary—I’m a sure thing here.’
Now he laughed. ‘That’s good to know. When you came in wearing that, I thought you might have changed your mind.’
‘Not at all.’
‘Then perhaps you could take them off now,’ he suggested.
‘Is that an order?’
‘Not at all,’ he replied, cleverly echoing her own words. ‘Would you like me to do it for you?’
Yes, she thought with a dizzying rush of desire. But it was imperative she keep some control in all this. Harriet already feared that once she was naked in his bed she might be lost for ever. It was one thing to have a couple of raunchy encounters out of bed, another thing entirely to spend the whole night in his arms.
Scooping in a steadying breath, she slipped off the bottom half of the PJs first, tossing it onto the armchair in the corner, before turning her attention
to the top half. Crossing her arms, she lifted it up over her head, hotly aware of the way his eyes were glued to her. When at last she stood naked before him, it took all of her mental and physical strength not to tremble, or to flee. The raw hunger in his gaze was both seductive and terrifying. Had any man ever wanted her like this, and vice versa? Alex had said they’d fallen in lust with each other. Harriet hoped that was all it was.
‘And you think you’re not anything special,’ he growled, shaking his head at her. Throwing back the sheet to reveal his own stunning nakedness, Alex stretched out his hand towards her. ‘Now come here, you gorgeous thing, you. I can’t wait another second.’
Chapter Fourteen
HARRIET WOKE IN the same position she’d fallen asleep, lying on her side with Alex’s body wrapped around hers like two spoons. His arms were wrapped tightly around her waist, her bottom pressed up against his stomach. She didn’t dare move, but whilst her body remained still, her brain was active, reliving their long night of lovemaking.
No, not lovemaking, she amended. Your long night of sex, dummy. Don’t start thinking of it as lovemaking.
But it had felt like lovemaking at the time, she conceded, Alex proving to be a surprisingly tender lover. Imaginative, yes, and totally uninhibited—the things he did with his tongue!—but never had Harriet felt one second of disgust, or even embarrassment. He had a beguiling way about him which bypassed such feelings, caressing her at length between acts of actual intercourse, playing with her body with sometimes shocking intimacy. Yet she had never felt shock, only excitement and pleasure, along with the most amazing orgasms. So many that she had lost count.
Alex had been so right when he’d said she’d fallen in lust with him. She had. Totally.
Her sigh was the sigh of a thoroughly sated woman.
She should have been appalled with herself. But she wasn’t. She wasn’t even appalled with him. Yet she definitely should have been. If truth be told, Alex was nothing but an arrogant devil with the morals of an alley cat, who thought he could indulge in a strictly sexual affair with his PA, then just shrug her off when he grew bored with her in bed. Which he would. That was the nature of the beast. His admission that he’d always fancied her went some way to excusing his behaviour. But if that was the case, then he should never have hired her, damn him. His lust had become a time bomb waiting to happen.
I never stood a chance, she realised.
Her sigh this time had nothing to do with satisfaction.
‘Will you stop all that sighing?’ Alex muttered into her hair.
Harriet automatically stiffened, her buttocks tensing when her legs straightened.
He groaned, his hands lifting to cup her breasts as he rolled over onto his back, taking her with him. Panic filled Harriet as the evidence of his erection sent jabs of desire rocketing through her own infatuated flesh. She tried to wriggle away from him, but he held her tight.
‘Hand me a condom, beautiful,’ he purred into her ear. ‘My hands are otherwise occupied.’
Which they were, his palms rubbing over her still-erect nipples, sending unnecessary messages to that part of her which seemed always to be ready for him. Her legs fell apart of their own volition, her belly tightening.
‘Haven’t you had enough?’ Harriet protested, but weakly, her hand already reaching for the condom.
‘Not even remotely,’ he replied.
* * *
Alex had plenty of opportunity to think about that telling reply during the drive back to Sydney. Harry had refused to put off her Sunday lunch with her friend, despite his doing his best to persuade her over breakfast to stay another night. Whilst she was extremely compliant in bed—and in the spa bath this morning—she became a different woman once she was up and dressed, reverting to the difficult one who was not amenable to persuasion.
Alex’s decision when he woke this morning to change the rules of their affair looked in danger of failing. When he’d suggested that they meet up at least one night during the week, she had been quick to say no, reminding him that that wasn’t what they’d agreed on. She would come to his apartment next Friday night and not before.
Alex couldn’t contemplate waiting that long before he made love to her again.
It came to Alex after he’d been driving in a somewhat frustrated silence for over two hours that his PA’s hot-as-hell behaviour last night might be worrying her. In his experience, women weren’t as pragmatic about sex as men. They read into things. They sometimes invented complications where there weren’t any.
Slanting a quick glance her way, he saw that the set of her mouth was tight, her hands gripping her handbag in her lap with unnecessary force. Silly girl. Didn’t she know that there was nothing wrong with what they’d done last night? They were consenting adults. Grown-ups. Yet she was sitting there, acting like some guilty schoolgirl or an adulterous wife. Okay, so the suddenness of their affair—and the fieriness of their passion for each other—was on the startling side. But why fight it? Why not just go with the flow and enjoy what they could share till the fire had burned out, after which they could call it quits and she could go back to the life she’d mapped out for herself?
Another reason for her grim mood suddenly crossed Alex’s mind. Maybe she was worried that their affair might cost her her job.
He had to say something to reassure her.
‘I would never fire you, Harry,’ he said. ‘If that’s what’s bothering you.’
Her head turned his way, but she was wearing sunglasses and he couldn’t see what was going on in her eyes.
‘I know that,’ came her rather cool reply.
‘Then what is bothering you? Are you regretting last night?’
He was taken aback when she laughed. ‘Of course,’ she said. ‘Sleeping with the boss is never a good idea, even if he promises not to fire you when he grows bored with you in bed.’
‘I can’t see that happening in a hurry,’ he muttered. And he meant it. Which was a first for him. Alex had a low boredom threshold at the best of times. He was always looking for new challenges, new goals and, yes, new girlfriends.
Of course, Harry would never be a proper girlfriend. She was going to be his secret mistress, one who would be at his sexual beck and call only at weekends. Stupid rule, that. He had been an idiot ever to suggest such a masochistic arrangement.
‘I have no illusions,’ came her firm pronouncement, ‘about how this affair of ours will end.’
Maybe it will never end, Harry, came the unexpected thought. Maybe I will keep you as my secret mistress for ever.
It was a truly wicked thought. But a hell of an appealing one. People said you could never have your cake and eat it, too. But maybe he could. At least for a while. There was no hurry for her to get married, surely? She was only twenty-nine. Women got married later these days. And had children later. He would have to let her go eventually, he supposed. But till then he aimed to make her his. Without all these silly rules.
For the first time during this exasperating drive, Alex’s black mood lifted. Knowing what you wanted in life was always a good thing, he accepted. And he wanted Harriet. Not just for a few weeks. For much, much longer than that.
‘It’s never a wise thing to think about endings, Harry,’ he said, adopting his best salesman voice. ‘Far better to live in the moment. The only assurance we have in life is the here and now. You like having sex with me, don’t you?’
She sighed. ‘You know I do.’
‘Then stop stressing and just enjoy. We could be dead tomorrow.’
When he glanced over at her, he saw that she was frowning.
‘I can’t think like that,’ she said. ‘I have to plan. You plan. You plan all the time. So stop giving me this “live in the moment” nonsense, Alex. If you think you can persuade me to change my mind where the rules of our affair are concerned, then you can think again.’
Alex gritted his teeth. Lord, but she would try the patience of a saint. And he was no saint. He was, however,
a man who rose to a challenge.
Relaxing the clenched muscles in his jaw took an effort, but he managed before shooting her a warmly amused smile. ‘Can’t blame a man for trying, Harry. Last night was so fabulous that I find it unbearable to wait another week to sample some more of your bewitching charms.’
‘You were the one who claimed sex was better if you wait.’
He smiled with amusement at the cleverness of her mind. And the sharpness of her wit. ‘Yes, well, there’s waiting and waiting. I was talking about a few hours on that occasion, not a whole week. I would imagine that by Friday night I’ll be ready to explode.’
‘Too much information,’ she threw at him.
He laughed, then she laughed, breaking the tension that had been building since they’d set off.
‘That’s better,’ he said.
‘Better?’ she echoed.
‘I wasn’t looking forward to sitting next to Miss Grumpy all the way back to Sydney.’
‘I wasn’t grumpy. I was just...thinking.’
‘Thinking is almost as bad as planning. Or so Jeremy tells me. He doesn’t believe in either.’
‘Your best friend, Jeremy? The rake from London?’
‘The one and the same.’
‘He sounds very shallow.’
‘Oh, he is. He admits it. But he’s also intelligent and charming and the most wonderful friend I’ve ever had. Outside of Sergio, that is.’
‘I presume it’s Sergio, then, who’s getting married.’
‘Yes, the poor devil.’
‘Why do you say it like that? What have you got against marriage?’
‘Don’t misunderstand me. I have nothing against marriage. It’s the woman he’s marrying that worries me.’
‘What’s wrong with her?’
For a split second, Alex hesitated. But then he told her. All about Sergio and Bella, detailing their past history and their current romance. She was taken aback at the identity of the bride-to-be, of course. Bella was very well known in Australia. But so was her reputation with men.
